Kansas State Jamar Samuels (32) is blocked by Texas' Clint Chapman, left, as Alexis Wangmene, right, helps defend during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012, in Austin,

AUSTIN — As Alexis Wangmene poured his first cup of coffee early Saturday morning, something even more potent was brewing in his off-campus condominium.

At 7 a.m., the Texas senior fired up his laptop and started playing video of last month's loss to Kansas State, and he didn't like what he saw. The Wildcats' huge frontline was pushing him around, and as the caffeine took hold, so did Wangmene's anger.

“I told myself, ‘There's no way these guys can be stronger than me,'” Wangmene said.

Later that afternoon, in the Longhorns' direst moments of desperation, he proved his point emphatically. Providing an aggressive, tough interior presence when UT had no other options, Wangmene's rugged effort helped the Longhorns rally from a 15-point second-half deficit and beat the Wildcats 75-64 at the Erwin Center.

Wangmene, a 6-foot-8 forward from Cameroon and former Central Catholic standout, reached career highs in points (15) and rebounds (13) and blocked two shots as UT won its third game in a row. In what could turn out to be the Longhorns' most important victory of the season, Wangmene was the most impressive part.

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“Lex, what can you say?” UT coach Rick Barnes said. “No question he played the best game he ever played.”

After wilting in big moments for much of the season, the Longhorns (16-9, 6-6 Big 12) simply overwhelmed KSU (17-7, 6-6) in the second half. UT trailed 42-27 in the first minute after halftime but responded with runs of 13-0 and 8-0 — both highlighted by Wangmene follow-dunks — to take control.

“They punched us again and again and again, and got us on the ropes, and we never punched back,” Wildcats coach Frank Martin said of UT. “They Bogarted us in every facet of the game.”

Sorely needing a quality victory to put themselves in position for a 14th consecutive NCAA tournament bid, the Longhorns shot just 28 percent from the field in the first half. With point guard Myck Kabongo and all of UT's non-Wangmene big men sidelined due to foul trouble, the Longhorns missed 18 of 25 attempts to fall behind by 13 at the break.

But if their postseason fate was in danger, they didn't act like it.

“We didn't panic,” Kabongo said.

Instead, UT clamped down on defense, holding KSU to 32 percent shooting in the second half while not allowing the Wildcats a trip to the foul line. For the game, the Longhorns had a 48-12 edge in free-throw attempts.

Martin made no issue of the discrepancy, and UT's J'Covan Brown — who led all scorers with 23 points — said it was evidence of the Longhorns' aggression. Twice, Brown spun through the lane for acrobatic layups.

“When I spin, crazy things happen,” Brown said.

Now, the craziest might be that after starting 3-6 in Big 12 play, the Longhorns look like an NCAA tournament team again.

“We've been a resilient team,” Barnes said. “And we've been a confident team.”